Survival, the latest DLC for The Division is now available for PC, Xbox and PS4. This new mode is a kind of "Battle Royal": You are together with 23 other agents in a life-hostile environment, fighting enemies against hunger, cold and thirst. You try to get into the dark zone and survive.

How to Start Survival Mode

Survival is a new mode, which is completely separated from the rest of the game. You start a session by going into the terminal to the door over which "survival" stands. Now choose whether you are playing in a group or solo and if you want the PvE or the PvP variant.

After a short cutscene, which you can skip, proceed. There is a crafting material right next to you, which you should look for. So you can make the first outfit, which protects you against the cold. Don’t run out into the snowstorm without warm clothes! To begin with, the cold is your greatest enemy.

You can now decide whether you want to go to the helicopter crash area or not. There you will find good equipment, but other agents will get there too. If your PvP is playing, you must prepare for the items with other players. However: Also in the PvE the items are accessible to everyone. Others can snatch them from your eyes.

Three important things to survive

You should pay attention to these three things in the further course of the game:

- Water: Your agent is thirsty. When he drinks water, he can better recognize items and chests that are near you. So you will be able to farm the gear you need to survive more efficiently. The boxes are partly well hidden. Without water, you walk directly past them without even noticing them. So drink enough to tag the items.

- Food: Look for edible, such as energy bars, to regenerate your health. If you are hungry, you will not recover. Eat only when you have little life. Otherwise you will be wasting your food.

- Medication: Your agent is infected and only survives an hour. Use drugs and painkillers to keep him alive longer. However, that is why you don’t have to worry too much. An hour is a lot of time and on your way you will find enough medication.

Equipment and Weapons - The Best Weapons in The Division for Survival

Distributed over the map, there are several shelters. The first agent arriving there receives special items. You will also find manufacturing stations. These are especially important in Survival mode, as you have to gear up your own gear.

Here you also make your weapons from weapon parts. In survival, light machine guns are said to be outstanding. Perhaps they are currently the "best weapons" for this mode, as they come with a large magazine, solid precision and good range. Machine guns in The Division are easy to control without mods. Choose an M60 or M249.

Since you don’t want to get too close to your enemies - after all, you have to start from scratch when you die - a second weapon is a precision weapon. A big drawback, however, is: In the snowstorm and in the fog, it is difficult to see the enemies from a great distance. Especially in the PvP version, SMGs and shotguns are also recommended for close combat.